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18 February 2018

Here's how it works: The Recent Releases chart brings together critical reaction to new albums from more than 50 sources worldwide. It's updated daily. Albums qualify with 5 reviews, and drop out after 6 weeks into the longer timespan charts.

8.3 |
Consequence Of Sound

The iconic songwriter's piercing pop sensibility translates just as well across the pond
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8.095130

8.0 |
The Arts Desk

The carefully wrought lyrics of an at-times weary septuagenarian draw you in
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8.095132

8.0 |
American Songwriter

There’s a lot to chew on, but Americana is an overstuffed, first class offering from one of the UK’s most feted songwriters and a worthy entry into Ray Davies’ rightfully esteemed catalog
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8.095137

8.0 |
Exclaim

It's a trip through the mind of one of rock'n'roll's greatest songwriters
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8.095193

8.0 |
The Independent

The kind of concept album that Bernie Taupin might have written for Elton John; but being Ray Davies, it’s not so much comprised of fond, mythopoeic imaginings as the more specific (non-political) relationship that still subsists between Britain and America
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8.095405

8.0 |
PopMatters

Americana is as fine a late-career album as one could hope for. For long-time fans and neophytes alike, Americana is a treasure to behold
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8.0 |
The Music

8.0 |
Uncut

A deeply satisfying reminder that Davies remains a songwriter with a huge reach but few equals
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8.095265

8.0 |
The Observer

The cod-Native American field holler of Change for Change and the shuffling, jazzy I’ve Heard That Beat Before are highlights
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8.096754

8.0 |
The Skinny

If there’s ever been a moment in your life that Ray Davies or The Kinks made better, you’ll find joy here
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7.395131

7.3 |
Pitchfork

Its back-to-basics energy and prosaic storytelling make it his best solo album in years
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6.795282

6.7 |
Paste Magazine

It’s probably unfair to expect a better album than this one at this stage in Davies’ career, and a handful of songs here are as inspired as anything he has done in at least 30 years
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6.495984

6.4 |
Gig Soup

Davies will always be associated with an idealised version of England – waxing rhapsodic about Waterloo tube station, village greens and dance halls, so to hear him turn his attention to The New World is a real novelty
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6.0 |
Spectrum Culture

6.0 |
The Irish Times

Attention begins to waver towards the album’s end, but there are songs here that suggest Davies still has plenty to offer
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6.095230

6.0 |
The FT

Album includes a track that summons the Londoner’s residual love for the US and tales of life on the road
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6.095233

6.0 |
Evening Standard

The Kinks legend goes transatlantic in the first half of a double-album project
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5.595141

5.5 |
Under The Radar

And while sometimes the lyrics seem questionable when considered in the context of that art form, overall Americana is an enjoyable listen with a couple highlights any fan wouldn't want to miss
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4.095194

4.0 |
The Guardian

Americana presents itself as Ray Davies’ late-flowering masterwork, exploring his lifelong love-hate relationship with the US, with the Jayhawks as his backing band. Strip away this biography, though, and these songs shrivel like raisin
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